And I only am escaped alone to tell thee.

Apparently, when a sperm whale dies, it turns itself toward the sun before passing on. “The Dying Whale” can be a hard chapter to read partly because much of the chapter details the last moments of a life, and anthropomorphically at that — for instance, Ishmael describes the whale’s dying sounds as tuneful prayers.

The other reason this chapter can be an unpleasant read is Ahab. Like a solipsistic friend, Ahab constantly interprets every moment as some greater metaphor in his existence, and that can be tedious. One of the things I love most about Moby-Dick is the recurring idea that there is no higher meaning in the world, only the meaning each individual brings to each experience. However, by the end of the book Ahab is so damaged and off his rocker that the meanings he brings become less and less compelling. “Suckled by the sea”? “Buoyed by the breaths of once living things”? Please!